The present invention relates generally to graphical user interfaces (GUI), and more particularly to a navigation tool for graphical user interfaces.
Until relatively recently, software-based documents have been primarily viewed and manipulated on desktop or laptop computers with relatively large displays, typically 640-480 pixels or larger. These displays are often large enough to display a full page of standard size page or at least a significant portion of the page. Hence, on-screen graphical menus and controls displayed in window of an application did not greatly reduce the display area for the underlying document. Computers also have peripheral devices such as a keyboard or a mouse to control the display of content information. Thus, viewing and navigating around a single-page or multi-page document have not posed much difficulty.
Due to increasing focus on compactness of electronic devices, however, the displays especially in portable electronic devices are becoming smaller and smaller. Popular electronic devices with a smaller display area include electronic organizers, PDA's (personal digital assistants), and graphical display-based telephones. Also available today are communicators that facilitate various types of communication such as voice, faxes, SMS (Short Messaging Services) messages, e-mail, and Internet-related applications. These products can likewise only contain a small display area.
To enable users to navigate around a full page of content information, these devices typically provide hard-keys for arrows as shown in FIG. 1. The hard-keys, however, not only increase the size but also add to the cost of the devices. Also, hard-keys generally provide limited options for direction of movement, e.g., vertical or horizontal. They generally do not provide the freedom to move in any direction.
Some displays of these devices also require a separate stylus having peripheral technology that requires transmission of electromagnetic pulses or light to the display. These devices often require additional controllers such as buttons on the body or the tip of the stylus for activation. Furthermore, these styli require a power source, either through wire or battery, and their compatibility is generally limited to a specific device.
As shown in FIG. 2, other devices substitute hard-keys with graphical on-screen arrows or scroll bars that are typically used in full-size computer displays. The on-screen scroll bars, however, occupy valuable screen real estate and compound the limitations of small displays. Similar to the hard-keys, the on-screen arrows also generally restrict the navigational movement to horizontal or vertical direction.
In other forms of on-screen GUIs, e.g., pop-up menus, also take up valuable screen space, further reducing the available display area for content information. Additionally, on-screen pop-up menus typically provide available functions in multiple layers, thus requiring a user to move deeply into the hierarchy before reaching the desired function. This is time consuming and renders the GUI cumbersome and ineffective.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide navigation tools that allow small-size devices while maximizing the use of available screen real estate.
It is also desirable to provide tools to navigate within a document at any direction at varying speeds.
It is further desirable to provide navigation tools that can be activated without requiring specific electronic devices.
In addition, it is further desirable to provide an improved GUI that simplifies GUI by recognizing various characteristics of the touch input.